Habsburg Spain

Habsburg Spain refers to the history of Spain from 1516 to 1700, when it was ruled by kings from the German House of Habsburg. The Habsburg dynasty came to power in 1516 after Philip I of Castile and Joanna the Mad's son Charles became King of Spain; he also became Holy Roman Emperor in 1519. The Habsburgs inherited all of "the Spains" from Joanna and Ferdinand II of Aragon upon Charles' accession to power in 1516, coming to rule Aragon, Castile, Leon, Navarre, and, from 1580 to 1640, Portugal. The Habsburg rulers, chiefly Charles and his son Philip II of Spain, also ruled over the Americas, the East Indies, the Low Countries, Franche-Comte in France, the Rhineland in Germany, the Portuguese Empire, and small enclaves such as Ceuta and Oran in North Africa. Spain's power began to decrease as a result of the Dutch Revolt of 1568-1648 and the Thirty Years' War of 1618-1648, during which Spain lost control of the Netherlands to the Dutch Republic; a series of wars with the Kingdom of France in the second half of the 17th century led to Spain losing Franche-Comte and several other possessions to the French. In 1700, the death of the childless King Carlos II of Spain left the Spanish Habsburg extinct, and the House of Bourbon acceeded to power.